Showing 1–50 of 459 regulations
Alternative dispute resolution
The Canadian Energy Regulator must provide alternative dispute resolution processes for disputes under the Act when all parties consent. Results are non-binding but may be considered by the Commission or designated officers in their decisions and may be made public with party consent.
Effect of election
Section 260 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act establishes that filing an election under section 259 for international power lines prevents new permit issuance, converts pending applications to certificate applications, and revokes existing permits or certificates. Applicants or permit holders who file the election and are acquiring or leasing land become liable for all damages and reasonable costs incurred by landowners from abandonment of such acquisition or lease.
Application Guide: Certification of Radiation Devices or Class II Prescribed Equipment, Version 1.1
REGDOC-1.5.1 v1.1 is a Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission application guide helping applicants prepare and submit certification applications for radiation devices and Class II prescribed equipment. The guide ensures prescribed equipment is safe, protects public health and environment, meets national security standards, and complies with Canada's international nuclear obligations under the Nuclear Safety and Control Act.
Deterministic Safety Analysis
REGDOC-2.4.1 establishes Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission requirements for deterministic safety analysis at nuclear power plants and small reactor facilities (below 200 MWt). The document prescribes methods for safety analysis reports, design basis event selection, acceptance criteria, and documentation using a risk-informed, graded approach, incorporating Fukushima lessons and international safety practices.
Relocation
The Canadian Energy Regulator may order holders of international or interprovincial power line permits or certificates to relocate infrastructure when necessary to facilitate construction or relocation of other facilities. The regulator determines cost allocation between parties, requires mandatory consultation procedures, and may order reimbursement of reasonable costs incurred by persons making submissions.
Site Evaluation and Site Preparation for New Reactor Facilities, Version 1.3
REGDOC-1.1.1 establishes Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission requirements for site evaluation and preparation of new reactor facilities, including nuclear power plants and small modular reactors. Applicants must characterize sites, assess severe external events and multiple simultaneous accidents, and demonstrate adequate safety measures during site preparation and construction using a risk-informed, graded approach.
Application
Section 160 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act establishes a compensation claims tribunal where persons, organizations, governments, and Indigenous governing bodies may file claims for damages caused by pipeline releases from designated companies within prescribed timeframes. The Tribunal Chairperson must promptly assign claims to panels and notify all relevant parties.
Security of Nuclear Substances: Sealed Sources and Category I, II and III Nuclear Material, Version 2.1
REGDOC-2.12.3 Version 2.1 establishes minimum security requirements for sealed radioactive sources and Category I, II, and III nuclear materials in Canada. Licensees must implement technical and administrative controls during storage, transport, and handling to prevent loss, sabotage, unauthorized possession, or illegal removal. Requirements cover security plans, transport vehicles, containers, and third-party carrier compliance.
Decision by Governor in Council
Section 186 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act grants the Governor in Council authority to issue binding orders on pipeline certificate applications following CER recommendations. The Governor may approve certificates with conditions, dismiss applications, or refer recommendations for reconsideration. Orders must include written reasons demonstrating consideration of relevant factors and be issued within 90 days (extendable). Orders are final, must be published in the Canada Gazette within 15 days, and the CER must comply within seven days.
Suspension of certificates
The Canadian Energy Regulator Commission may suspend energy certificates by order if the certificate holder requests suspension, consents to it, or breaches certificate conditions. Before suspending for non-compliance, the Commission must provide written notice and opportunity for the holder to respond.
Public notice
The Canadian Energy Regulator must immediately notify the public when a compensation tribunal is established, including publication in the Canada Gazette detailing the tribunal's purpose and procedures for filing compensation claims.
Recommendations on cooperative measures
The Canadian Energy Regulator may recommend measures to the Minister that it deems necessary or appropriate to facilitate cooperation with governmental and other agencies in Canada and internationally on energy matters, energy sources, and the safety and security of regulated and abandoned facilities.
Regulations — excluded periods
The Canadian Energy Regulator is authorized to make regulations defining circumstances in which time periods may be excluded from deadline calculations for pipeline applications and regulatory decisions, enabling flexible processing timelines.
Offence and punishment
Section 379 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act establishes criminal offences and penalties for contraventions of the Act or regulations. Summary conviction carries fines up to $100,000 or one year imprisonment; indictable offence carries fines up to $1,000,000 or five years imprisonment. Due diligence is a defence. Corporate officers, directors, and agents who direct or participate in offences are liable. Each day of continued violation constitutes a separate offence.
Regulations — Governor in Council
Section 372 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act authorizes the Governor in Council to establish regulations governing the export licensing, movement, and inspection of designated oil and gas from Canada. The Regulator may prescribe license application requirements, validity periods, export quantities, inspection standards for related equipment and records, and measurement units for oil and gas transportation.
Limitation
Canadian Energy Regulator Act section 241 requires pipeline companies to obtain Commission approval before abandoning any pipeline. Companies must notify affected landowners and publish notices in local media. Mandatory public hearings apply if written opposition is filed unless withdrawn or deemed frivolous. The Commission may impose conditions on abandonment approvals, and companies remain liable for abandoned pipelines.
Review of Act after 10 years
The Canadian Energy Regulator Act mandates a comprehensive parliamentary review of the Act's provisions and operation ten years after its coming into force, to be conducted by a designated Senate, House of Commons, or joint parliamentary committee.
Reporting Requirements for Waste Nuclear Substance Licensees, Class II Nuclear Facilities and Users of Prescribed Equipment, Nuclear Substances and Radiation Devices
REGDOC-3.1.3 establishes mandatory reporting requirements for Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission licensees managing waste nuclear substances, Class II nuclear facilities, and users of prescribed equipment and radiation devices. Licensees must report events, dangerous occurrences and situations within specified timeframes and submit annual compliance reports, following a risk-informed approach aligned with national and international nuclear safety standards.
Information Incorporated by Reference in Canada’s Packaging and Transport of Nuclear Substances Regulations, 2015, Volume I, Version 2
REGDOC-2.14.1 incorporates IAEA Standards (SSR-6) into Canada's Packaging and Transport of Nuclear Substances Regulations 2015, establishing requirements for safe radioactive material transport including licensing, package design, certification, material classification, radiation protection, and record-keeping. All persons transporting or offering nuclear substances must comply, with joint enforcement by the CNSC and Transport Canada.
Import and Export, Version 2
REGDOC-2.13.2 provides Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission guidance on licensing the import and export of controlled nuclear substances, dual-use equipment, and Category 1–2 radioactive sources. It outlines application procedures, licensing criteria, end-use controls, and compliance verification mechanisms to prevent nuclear weapons proliferation under the Nuclear Non-proliferation Import and Export Control Regulations.
Designation
The Governor in Council must designate one full-time commissioner as Lead Commissioner and another as Deputy Lead Commissioner of the Canadian Energy Regulator.
Establishment and composition
The Canadian Energy Regulator is governed by a board of 5–9 directors, including a Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson, with at least one director required to be an Indigenous person.
Commission
The Canadian Energy Regulator shall comprise up to seven full-time commissioners, with provision for part-time members, and must include at least one Indigenous full-time commissioner.
Annual report
The Canadian Energy Regulator's board must submit an annual report to the Minister within 120 days of each fiscal year end (March 31), detailing the Regulator's activities. The Minister must table the report in Parliament within 15 sitting days of receipt.
Authorization — powers, duties and functions
The Lead Commissioner of the Canadian Energy Regulator may delegate regulatory powers, duties, and functions to commissioners, either jointly or individually, except for procedural, appellate, investigative, enforcement, and review matters under specified sections. Actions taken under delegation are deemed performed by the Commission itself.
Authorization — report
Section 46 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act authorizes the Lead Commissioner to designate commissioners to report on Commission matters and applications. Authorized commissioners possess full investigatory and evidentiary powers for information gathering. Reports may be formally adopted as Commission decisions or handled otherwise as deemed appropriate.
Role of Lead Commissioner
Section 38 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act defines the Lead Commissioner's administrative responsibilities, including managing Commission operations, distributing work among commissioners, and forming panels of at least three commissioners to exercise regulatory powers and perform duties.
Minimum Staff Complement
REGDOC-2.2.5 provides guidance to Canadian Class I nuclear facility licensees on demonstrating adequate staffing of qualified workers across all operating states—normal operations, anticipated occurrences, design-basis accidents, and emergencies—to ensure safe and compliant operation under the Nuclear Safety and Control Act.
Measures to meet time limit
Section 42 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act grants the Lead Commissioner authority to take administrative measures to ensure prescribed time limits for energy applications are met, including removing or reassigning commissioners, adjusting panel composition, or designating a single commissioner to handle the application.
Application — Special Act lands
Under the Canadian Energy Regulator Act, any provision or regulation that applies to ordinary lands automatically extends to Special Act lands, ensuring uniform regulatory oversight and compliance requirements across all land categories within the regulator's jurisdiction.
Role of Chairperson
Section 19 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act defines the Chairperson's authority to preside over board meetings and perform assigned duties. The Vice-Chairperson may temporarily assume the role during absences but requires Governor in Council approval to act beyond 90 days.
Court of record
The Canadian Energy Regulator is established as a court of record with superior court powers, enabling it to compel witness testimony, demand document production, enforce orders, and inspect property. All proceedings must be handled expeditiously while maintaining procedural fairness and natural justice.
Short title
This is the short title clause of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act, establishing the official name of Canada's primary federal legislation for regulatory oversight and approval of energy projects.
For greater certainty
Section 25 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act clarifies that the Chief Executive Officer must provide support services and facilities necessary for the Commission to exercise its regulatory powers and perform its duties.
Show cause hearing relating to waste
Under the Canadian Energy Regulator Act, the Commission holds show cause hearings on applications by the Chief Conservation Officer regarding waste in oil and gas pool recovery. If waste is found, the Commission may order gas collection, processing, reinjection schemes, or pool repressurizing/recycling, and may shut in non-compliant pools unless approved schemes are operational by specified dates.
Binding on Her Majesty
Section 7 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act establishes that the Act applies to and binds Her Majesty in right of Canada and the provinces, ensuring federal and provincial governments are subject to the same regulatory obligations as private entities in energy regulation matters.
Canadian Energy Regulator
Establishes the Canadian Energy Regulator as a federal Crown corporation and agent of Canada with its head office in Calgary, Alberta. The CEO may open or close additional offices after consulting the board of directors, with such administrative changes not affecting existing director or commissioner appointments.
Change in composition of panel
Administrative provision establishing that when a regulatory panel's composition changes, all evidence and representations previously submitted remain valid and binding on the Canadian Energy Regulator unless formally reviewed, varied, or rescinded by the Commission.
Regulations
The Canadian Energy Regulator may establish regulations designating contraventions of the CER Act, permits, orders, and conditions as enforceable violations subject to administrative penalties up to $25,000 for individuals and $100,000 for other persons. Regulations will specify penalty determination methods and service procedures.
Definition of document of authorization
Section 9 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act defines 'document of authorization' as regulatory instruments issued by the CER, including certificates, permits, authorizations, licenses, and orders that establish the legal framework for energy infrastructure regulation in Canada.
Variation or transfer of certificates
The Canadian Energy Regulator Commission may vary or transfer energy certificates issued under the Act on its own initiative or upon application. The Minister may direct the Commission to recommend variations or transfers to the Governor in Council if deemed in the public interest. The Commission may impose conditions necessary to fulfill the Act's purposes when varying or transferring certificates.
Role of the board of directors
Section 17 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act establishes the board of directors' governance role, requiring it to provide strategic direction and advice to the Regulator while being prohibited from influencing specific Commission decisions or recommendations. The board may establish bylaws for its operations, with quorum defined as a majority of directors including the Chairperson.
Financial Guarantees for Decommissioning of Nuclear Facilities and Termination of Licensed Activities
REGDOC-3.3.1 establishes requirements for applicants and licensees of Canadian nuclear facilities to establish and maintain financial guarantees ensuring sufficient funds for safe decommissioning and termination of licensed activities. The regulation applies to Class IA/IB nuclear facilities, uranium mines and mills, and waste nuclear substances licenses under the Nuclear Safety and Control Act, superseding the 2000 guidance document G-206.
Accident Management, Version 2
REGDOC-2.3.2 establishes Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission requirements for integrated accident management at reactor facilities. Licensees must develop, implement, and validate defence-in-depth strategies, operational procedures, and capabilities to manage abnormal and severe accidents, consistent with IAEA safety standards and informed by lessons from the 2011 Fukushima event.
Operations Programs for Reactor Facilities
REGDOC-2.3.4 establishes requirements and guidance for developing and implementing operations programs at nuclear reactor facilities, including conventional power plants, advanced reactors, and small modular reactors. Licensees may apply risk-informed and graded approaches proportional to facility risk profiles, based on operational experience and best practices from water-cooled reactors.
Relocation
The Canadian Energy Regulator may order pipeline companies to relocate pipelines when necessary for safety, environmental protection, public infrastructure projects, or to prevent interference with drainage systems. The regulator determines cost allocation among parties, ensures procedural compliance with prior consultation requirements, and may award reasonable costs to regulatory proceeding participants.
Determining compensation
Section 169 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act establishes the Tribunal's procedure for determining compensation when amending a decision on reconsideration. The Tribunal must decide whether to award compensation for compensable damage claimed, calculate amounts per regulations accounting for prior payments, and may award authorized costs. Written notice must specify compensation awarded, cost determinations, regulatory reductions, and previously paid amounts.
Conflict of Interest Act
Section 22 of the Canadian Energy Regulator Act defines conflict of interest circumstances for the CEO, prohibiting ownership, shareholding, directorship, or involvement in hydrocarbon production, electricity generation/transmission, offshore energy operations, related securities, incompatible employment, and concurrent positions at the Regulator.
Replacement of commissioner during hearing
Procedural rule under the Canadian Energy Regulator Act allowing the Lead Commissioner to designate a replacement commissioner to continue hearings or render decisions if the assigned commissioner becomes unable to act or resigns during proceedings or between hearing conclusion and decision issuance.
Waste Management, Volume I: Management of Radioactive Waste
REGDOC-2.11.1 establishes requirements and guidance for Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission licensees managing radioactive waste, including characterization, storage, and disposal facilities. The document applies to all CNSC licensees under the Nuclear Safety and Control Act and is complemented by CSA N292 standards for comprehensive radioactive waste management oversight.